OPEN AND URGENT LETTER TO EUROPEAN UNION HEALTH MINISTERS
This is an open le er to all European Union Health Ministers rela ng to the par cipa on of Taiwan in the World Health Assembly, 18-19 May 2020.
To the Ministers of Health of the Member States of the European Union,
The Corona Crisis will dominate the World Health Assembly to be held on 18-19 May, in Geneva, through a ministerial video conference. As the virus knows no borders, na onali es and ideologies, the world needs to share all available informa on and exper se that can be helpful to combat the pandemic.
That is why we, the undersigned members of the European and na onal Parliaments, urge you to insist that the World Health Organisa on (WHO) returns to the pragma c protocol - prac ced from 2009 to 2016 - of invi ng Taiwan as an observer to this mee ng format. The Taiwanese government has successfully managed to curb the spread of the virus in spite of Taiwan’s geographic proximity to the virus origin.
The United States, Canada, Australia and New Zealand have officially taken the posi on to return to the 2009 – 2016 format.
We therefore request that Taiwan’s Minister of Health and Welfare, Chen Shih Chung, be invited to a end this year’s virtual WHA videoconference, as an observer, to share with us Taiwan’s successful experience in handling the COVID-19 pandemic. Furthermore, we request that the WHO facilitate appropriate and feasible arrangements for Taiwan to par cipate in all WHO mee ngs, mechanisms and ac vi es.
In the interests of a pragma c, science-based approach to global health, we look forward to receiving a posi ve response from you.
Thank you and best wishes,
Urmas Paet Michael Gahler Katalin Cseh Bernard Gue a Karin Karlsbro Aušra Maldeikienė Riho Terras Frédérique Ries Michaela Šojdrová Sophie in ’t Veld Klemen Grošelj Tudor Ciuhodaru Juan Fernando López Aguilar Engin Eroglu José Ramón Bauzá Díaz Nicolaus Fest Andrus Ansip Gilles Lebreton Tomáš Zdechovský David Lega Klára Dobrev Csaba Molnár A la Ara-Kovács Sándor Rónai Brando Benifei Michal Šimečka Jan-Christoph Oetjen Abir Al-Sahlani Fredrick Federley Pascal Durand Alexandr Vondra Kosma Zlotowski Ivan Štefanec Hermann Tertsch Veronika Vrecionová Dragoş Tudorache Moritz Körner Salima Yenbou Margrete Auken Kira Peter-Hansen Charlie Weimers Leopoldo López Gil Svenja Hahn Niklas Nienass Rasa Juknevičienė Reinhard Bü kofer Eugen Jurzyca Javier Nart Witold Waszczykowski Thomas Waitz Nathalie Loiseau Beata Mazurek Malik Azmani Jan Huitema Caroline Nagtegaal Liesje Schreinemacher Bart Groothuis Margarita de la Pisa Carrión Margarete Bause Carles Puigdemont Antoni Comín Clara Ponsa Viola von Cramon-Taubadel Raphaël Glucksmann Ďuriš Nicholsonová Katrin Langensiepen Marco Campomenosi Milan Zver Liudas Mažylis Johan Van Overtveldt Anna Donáth Assita Kanko Geert Bourgeois Ju a Paulus Jürgen Tri n Barry Andrews François Alfonsi Benoît Biteau Damien Carême David Cormand Gendoline Delbos-Corfield Karima Delli Claude Gruffat Yannick Jadot Michèle Rivasi Caroline Roose Mounir Satouri Marie Toussaint Olivier Chastel Anna Fotyga Inese Vaidere Diana Riba i Giner Hannah Neumann Henrike Hahn Dorien Rookmaker Andrey Kovatchev Katrin Göring-Eckardt Gianna Gancia Petra de Su er Juozas Olekas Dominique Riquet Andreas Glück Miriam Lexmann Alviina Alametsä Omid Nouripour Fabio Massimo Castaldo